Electric lighting and display from electronic devices prevents proper sleep

It is an undisputable fact of nature that everybody needs a good night sleep to recharge our body system for the next day. In fact, the intensity of sleep you had will affect your body and mind’s performance the next day.

It has been revealed that our body has two cycles; the wake and the sleep cycle. The electric lightings disrupt the cycle by giving us a second wind when our body clocks should be winding down according to researchers.

It was claimed that light from electronic devices like phones, TVs, tablets even have worse effects worse effects because of the blue-enriched white light in them. Researchers have advocated replacing the blue enriched white lights (mostly LED displays) with red or orange-enriched light after sunset to reduce effect on body system.

This was revealed by Prof Charles Czeisler, of the Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard University, in the Nature journal. “There are many reasons why people get insufficient sleep in our 24/7 society, from early starts at work or school, or long commutes, to caffeine-rich food and drink,” he wrote.

“But the precipitating factor is an often unappreciated, technological breakthrough: the electric light. Without it, few people would use caffeine to stay awake at night. And light affects our circadian rhythms more powerfully than any drug.”

He later went on to explain that artificial lights relay a message to the brain that it is still day-time. This programs the brain to continue more daytime functions and pushes the night-time function back by few hours.

“As a result, many people are still checking email, doing homework or watching TV at midnight, with hardly a clue that it is the middle of the solar night,” he wrote.

“Technology has effectively decoupled us from the natural 24-hour day to which our bodies evolved, driving us to go to bed later.

“Night-time exposure to LEDs is typically more disruptive to circadian rhythms, melatonin secretion and sleep than incandescent lighting,” he continued.

“The adverse effects of night time light on sleep and circadian rhythms can be reduced by replacing blue-enriched light with red or orange-enriched white light after sunset.”

Deprivation of sleep has been known to raise the risk of obesity, heart disease, stroke and depression.

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